1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for recycling an empty toner container after the toner has been consumed.
2. Description of the Related Art
A recycling methods applied to a toner container for supplying a toner to a development apparatus provided to an image formation apparatus generally provide an old empty toner container in which toner has been consumed with an opportunity to be reused after the empty toner container is replaced with a new toner container, so that a user does not have to dispose the old toner container.
Among the recycle processes, it may be the most difficult to remove a cap of the toner container. The cap is mounted in a cylindrical opening defined in the main body of the toner container so that toner is filled in the main body through the opening. Adhesive may be applied between the distal end surface of the cylindrical toner filling port and the brim of the cap in order to prevent the leakage of the toner. The application of the adhesive, however, complicates the removal of the cap from the toner container.
Cutting the cylindrical toner filling port without interfering with the cap may be one approach to make the cap removal easy. This technology does not require the process of pulling out the cap from the toner filling port. Thus, this technology results in the efficient removal of the cap from the toner filling port. This method is not directed to numerous times of recycling the toner container because the cylindrical toner filling port will be shorted with the cutting process. Accordingly, even if the portions other than the toner filling port are still recyclable, the toner container has to be disposed after a few times of recycle.
A protrusion on the distal edge of the cylindrical toner filling port may be another approach to make the cap removal easy. This protrusion prevents the surface contact between the brim of the cap and the distal edge of the toner filling port. Consequently, a gap is formed between the brim of the cap and the distal edge of the toner filling port. The user may insert a tool in this gap to remove the cap from the toner filling port. This technology, however, does not still sufficiently facilitate the removal operation of the cap from the toner container.
In order to avoid an application of the adhesive between the cap and the toner filling port, an elastically deformable cap may also be used. The resilience of the cap to be fitted into the toner filling port may result in a sufficient seal between the cap and the toner filling port. On the other hand, the resilience of the cap may result in great frictional force between the cap and the toner filling port, and complicate the removal of the cap from the toner container.